Page 18 of A Kingdom of Monsters

“So?” Bael asked, clear confusion in his voice.

“So, don’t you think it’s suspicious that I should end up here? Your family has controlled Elsewhere for thousands of yearsbecause you have the strongest magic ever recorded. I’m only half magical, and somehow I’m the mate to not only one, but th—I mean two of the most powerful royals alive?”

“What are you saying?” Bael asked, slowly.

“What if it’s not even real?” I burst out, lifting my head back up to look at him. “What if you wouldn’t even be here, except that I’m…compelling you, or something. If all magic is made from the Source, and I’m literally the Source, maybe you’re just like the afflicted, or the underfae. You can’t help but try to be near me.”

I sucked in a deep breath, having said all that without stopping. I blinked, and suddenly Bael was directly in front of me. He stood so fast, I saw nothing but a gold blue, and then he was standing beside the tub, reaching down, and pulling me to my feet. A cascade of water fell down around me, drenching Bael’s clothing.

“Listen, to me.” His intense yellow gaze bore into me. “I love you and it has nothing to do with your magic.”

“You can’t know that,” I argued.

“Yes, I can,” he said fiercely. “Because if somehow my presence was hurting you, I wouldn’t hesitate to walk away. You’re not compelling me to do anything, little monster. I want you, always, whether you’re the fucking queen of the Fae, or just some fragile servant with a smart mouth.”

The corner of my mouth tipped up. “What if I’m neither?”

“That’s fine. Go anywhere and be anything you want, as long as I can go with you.” He grinned wickedly. “And as long as you promise to keep that smart mouth.”

I grinned, and stood up on my toes to kiss his lips. He responded enthusiastically, and I wound my arms around his neck, pulling him closer to me.

I suddenly became very aware that while he was completely clothed, I was naked and dripping wet. I pressed my body flush against his, soaking the front of his tunic and causing the fabric to stick to his muscled chest. In an instant, I felt him harden against me.

With a growl, Bael lifted me off my feet and carried me out of the tub. He didn’t bother to walk all the way to the bed in the next room, and merely pressed my back up against the wall. I wrapped my legs around him and held myself up, as I helped pull his soaking wet shirt over his head. Bael growled low in his throat, then leaned forward, fastening his lips around my right breast. His too sharp teeth bit into my nipple, sending a spark of combined pain and pleasure rocketing through me. My pulse pounded low in my core, and I tipped my head back against the wall, whimpering in pleasure.

Abruptly, Bael stopped moving.

I blinked in confusion, pulling back far enough to look at him. “What’s wrong?”

He grimaced, his eyes squeezing shut for a moment before he schooled his features back into a smile. “Sorry, little monster. Headache.”

“Oh,” I frowned, half in disappointment, half in concern. “Are you alright?”

“I’m fine. It’ll pass in a minute. Recently I’ve been getting them a lot, but they never last long.”

My eyes narrowed. “That sounds like it could be something serious. What if–”

In answer, Bael pressed a firm kiss to the curve of my neck, making me forget my words mid sentence. He licked over my skin, sending tingles skittering all over my body. At the same time, he ran one hand up my bare thigh to cup my core.

I made one more half-hearted attempt to question him about the headache. “Are you sure you didn’t want to lie down?”

“Actually, yes.” Bael smirked. “That sounds perfect.”

He carried me across the bathing room and out into the adjoining bedroom. I laughed when I glimpsed his determined expression in the vanity mirror, and caught on to what he was thinking.

Bael dropped me unceremoniously on the bed and I landed on my back in a tangled pile of soft silk sheets. He stood beside the bed, looming over me, his catlike eyes tracking over every inch of my body.

I smiled, and reached out a hand. “Aren’t you going to join me?”

Anticipation gripped me as he knelt on the floor, wrapping his long fingers around my calves and pulling me all the way to the edge of the mattress. My breath caught in my throat as his lips pressed against the sensitive skin on the inside of my thigh, sending shivers through my body.

I moaned, my hips rising off the bed of their own accord at the very first touch of his tongue. He pushed my legs wider apart and licked me slowly, dragging his tongue up my center, causing waves of pleasure to wash over me.

I moaned again, and twisted my hips, desperate for more friction. In answer, he splayed his fingers over my stomach, pushing me back down and holding me against the bed all the while administering slow, tortuous pleasure.

With each slow, deliberate swipe, he teased and tantalized me, building up the intensity. With a slow and deliberate motion, he pressed his lips against my throbbing clit, drawing out every keening sound from my lips.

I reached down gripping his shoulders, pulling his face up and toward to look at me. “Fuck me now. I want to come with you inside me.”

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